SHORT COMMUNICATION 381
The Unforeseen Results
By
Roger Behra
The topic of
abortion is never very far from the attention of the mass media. And the mass
media in regards to abortion includes both liberal and conservative members,
which is the way it should be in a democratic culture. Thanks to the total
media coverage no stones remain unturned.
In 1973, when Roe
v. Wade made abortion an acceptable part of American life, it is
understandable that there would be unforeseen result sooner or later down the
road. Well, recently, the mass media brought to the attention of Americans how
abortion has changed America. That is unforeseen part. America has truly and
noticeably changed and not for the better it must be stated.
The first unforeseen
change was the collapse of the institution of marriage. The idea that marriage
was a sacred institution began to disappear. Now divorces take places at the
drop of a hat.
The great
increase in out-of-wedlock births is the second big change in the American
culture. The idea that children were part of a sacred institution called
marriage began disappearing also. The philosophy that children can be born at
anytime outside of marriage prevails. The sense of shame has disappeared.
In 1965, long
before Roe v. Wade, less than 10 percent of American babies were born to unwed
mothers. Black women had a higher percentage than white women-24 percent to 3.1
percent. As of 2013, the percentage was up to 41 percent of babies born to
unwed mothers-73 percent to black women and 29 percent to white women. Sixty
percent of America´s out-of-wedlock babies are born to women in their 20s. And
what happens to a large percentage of out-of-wedlock babies? Yes, you guessed
it. All of this is a very big change in American culture.
Since Roe v.
Wade, we´ve gravitated to a new type of culture personal relationships. It is
materialistic. It is the tendency to admire our own physical appearance, to
admire our own abilities, to think an individual is greater than another
individual. We´ve made life a product to be bought and sold. We´ve become
commodities and use each other without thinking of how we affect each other as
young life is destroyed through abortion, or how we destroy human life in other
inhuman ways. The reverence for life has greatly diminished. So has the
reverence for institutions that support life.
So many
cultures throughout the world are in deplorable condition. America´s is one of
the many that started with the Roe v. Wade court decision in 1973. Now
Americans in their seventies or older are the only people who remember and can
tell how orderly a decent the culture was then. Modern day Americans are very
sad and disappointed at what is going on, and they also realize that it´s not going
to get any better. They also fell that our Heavenly Father should keep His
promise “to come again”. It is way past time.
R. B.
3-10-14